Local authorities granted investment licences to nine new projects and approved added capital to seven existing ones with a total value of nearly 200 million USD in industrial parks and export processing zones, lifting total projects in the locality to 224, worth close to 1.6 billion USD.

Total revenue of enterprises operating in the province was estimated to reach 1.47 billion USD, 2 percent higher than that of 2015.

They employed 31,700 workers, an increase of 688 people against the previous year.

The trade and service sector recorded stable growth, with total retail sales and service revenues hitting over 95.6 trillion VND (4.2 billion USD), representing a year-on-year rise of 9.5 percent.

However, the locality failed to realise its export goal in the year due to the tumbled shipment of its key exports such as rice and aquatic products.

The situation impacted greatly on the city’s budget collection, which reached only 8.7 trillion VND, down 1.7 percent against the last year.

A series of measures were taken to improve the quality of education and vocational training, promote poverty reduction and ensure social welfare, contributing to bringing better spiritual and material lives to locals.

Attention was also paid to upgrading health care infrastructure to meet locals’ examination and treatment demand, while disease prevention work was intensified.

Can Tho is looking to become an economic, education and training, health care and sci-tech centre and an important transport intersection in the Mekong Delta region in the near future.

The city is determined to accelerate the economic restructuring in connection with the change of growth model this year, towards increasing the scale, efficiency and competiveness of its economy.

In 2017, the city targets an economic growth of 7.8 percent and per capita income of 72.6 million VND.

Its export turnover is expected to hit 1.67 billion USD, a year-on-year increase of 7.5 percent.

Total investment in Can Tho is hoped to reach 55 trillion VND (2.42 billion USD) in the year, up 22.6 percent compared to 2016, while State budget collection will exceed 11.2 trillion VND, up 14.7 percent year-on-year.

To that end, the city will implement breakthrough measures to create drastic changes in socio-economic development, said Vo Thanh Thong, Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee.

Efforts will be made to improve the investment climate, step up administrative reform, adapt to climate change and ensure defence, security and social order./.